"If this little object is a planet that has been ejected from its native system, it conjures up the striking image of orphaned worlds, drifting in the emptiness of space," says Delorme.

The planet, believed to be between 50 and 120 million years old, was found near a stream of young stars called the AB Doradus Moving Group, located 100 light years away from Earth.

Its comparative proximity and the absence of a nearby bright star, has allowed astronomers using the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope in Chile, to study its atmosphere in great detail.

Observations indicate the object has a cloud top temperature of around 400°C.

"This object could be used as a benchmark for understanding the physics of similar exoplanets," says Delorme.

Glaciers on the surface of Pluto could explain the mysterious frozen world's youthful skin. Also: most Earth-like planet ever found orbiting a Sun-like star, and more support for the Standard Model of particle physics.